Thursday, July 19, 2012

ReReading Grave Mercy by Robin LaFevers

I haven’t reread a book since I started blogging in
November. ‘Til now. There is something
so delicious about a book that has so much depth in the way it is delivered
that is holds more wonder than simply “what happens next”. There is no surprise
the second time ‘round. I know who the traitor is, who the deceived are, who
the poisoned are. I remember, like a shadow, my first reading how I panicked on
this page or cried on this one. The second time through, I don’t panic, I don’t
cry. I dance a bazillion mini-jigs over the writing.

Do you do this? Collapse in awe over a well-dropped
hint? Reread a phrase just to to shake your head and chuckle over how well it’s
written? When I reread a book, I am stopping to smell the roses every sentence
along the way. The first time through, I had to sprint to the end, caught up in
the story. The wonderful wording flew by me… noticed, but hurried onward. The second
time through I revel in each delicious line.
It’s like rolling in autumn leaves. I gloried in their green splendor
before, but now they are multicolored, if crisp, and hold a different sort of
beauty.

Anticipation is heightened, too. I haven’t read Grave Mercy
so many times that I remember everything coming, but that shadow of what I felt
the first time is layered with a glow of what I know is coming and the
Anticipation is keen.

One of the biggest themes in this story is Ismae’s
relationship with her Father, Mortain. The first time through I was hesitant
and nervous to my core about this. Her relationship toward her father-figure
and God is so big and I was terrified of some twisted betrayal. I was ready for
Ismae to find loss, heartache, pain… I mean, this is the direction the whole
political scene points towards as straight as her arrow! So the depth of mercy
and peace in the midst of destruction was almost enough to bring me to sobs the
first time round. As a second read, I clung to that final trust right from the
beginning and every scene shifted ever so slightly so that I loved Ismae and
Duval even more.

My first reading was an e-copy from NetGalley. My second
reading was an ARC from a book-loving friend. (THANK YOU, VALERIA!!!!!) Having
easy access to that map at the beginning helped the political world clear up
for me – or maybe it’s easier to sort out the second time through. Or both.
Honestly, this is a book I knew I wanted in my library – my favorite, so far,
of 2012. My joy at rereading Grave Mercy is bumping it up to my rare 5.5
rating.

Looks like a good book; thanks for sharing :) I just found your blog and will definitely be following it from now on! I recently added some summer reading lists to my new blog if you want to take a look: http://heartisinthewriteplace.blogspot.com/thanks again!

Okay...I officially have to find a way to cram a reread of this book in. I love being able to go back through a book once I know how it ends and find all the hints of foreshadowing that let me know its coming. Back to the TBR pile with Grave Mercy! :]

This has been my favorite read this year also. I loved Grave Mercy and have been recommending it to everybody I know. I have too many books to read to do a complete reread but I know I have picked up Grave Mercy and reread the last four or five chapters several times.

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